Digital Pianos and Beginner Pianists

Tips for how to select the best digital piano for your needs.

Last year, 18,000 acoustic pianos were sold in the US, while digital piano sales were ten times that number, topping over 188,000.

Why are so many beginner piano students choosing digital over acoustic pianos?  And, with so many digital piano brands and models to choose from, how do you know which one is right for you? 

With over 35 years of teaching piano, I’m aware that not every student has the same musical goals, living circumstances, or financial resources to work with, and these factors can affect their choice of piano. 

While I prefer a high-quality acoustic piano that provides superior keyboard action and richer, more luminous sonorities, there is no question that digital pianos are here to stay. Why? Because they provide practical values not only for beginner students, but also for experienced professionals.

FOUR BENEFITS OF DIGITAL PIANOS

1. COST

Let’s say I was a beginning student and had only $600 to work with. Knowing what I know now, at that price, I wouldn't bother looking for an acoustic piano because it would likely be an old wreck in need of expensive repairs. I would get a digital piano with weighted keys. The action will be consistent, and the pitch will always be in tune. 

2. PRIVACY

During the day, I prefer to practice and teach on my acoustic piano, true enough.But, in the evening, I will often use my digital piano for sight reading or experimenting with new fingerings in repertoire pieces. And in my case, I always use a quality set of headphones.With headphones, you can play anytime without disturbing your family members or the neighbors next door.  And for those living in apartments, that can solve a major problem.  

3. MAINTENANCE 

Digital pianos don't need the same level of maintenance as acoustic pianos, which require tuning two or three times a year. However, the benefits of a well-maintained acoustic piano, for my values, outweigh these costs, so I really don’t see periodic tuning as a major burden. 

4. SPACE

Finding space in your living quarters can be a real challenge when purchasing a new instrument. Digital pianos usually occupy a little less space than upright pianos, and definitely less than grand pianos. Additionally, digital pianos weigh less and are more easily moved about than acoustic pianos. 

TYPES OF KEYBOARDS

First-time buyers can be confused by the variety of keyboards. To erase that doubt, let’s make quick work of defining these instruments: 

SYNTHESIZERS

Synthesizers are innovative instruments used to produce futuristic, electronic, and processed sounds, especially in genres like Synth-Pop and Synthwave. When combined with a music workstation, synthesizers are especially useful for composers in all musical genres to create, record, edit, and produce their music. 

But that is probably a big overreach for beginners who just want to start learning to play melodies with basic chords and get familiar with the geography of the keyboard.

STAGE PIANOS

Stage pianos are engineered for music performers. Portable and very durable, they are built to withstand the rigors of touring. They offer a high-quality sound library, prioritizing the grand piano sound, as well as organ and other instruments. Typically, they have fully weighted 88-note keyboards for an acoustic-piano feel. 

However, both synthesizers and stage pianos lack quality onboard speakers and rely on external amplifiers and PA systems,which adds extra cost to your investment. So,synthesizers and stage pianos might not be the best first choice for beginner piano students practicing at home. 

KEYBOARDS

The term keyboard broadly refers to instruments with 25 keys, 49 keys, 61 keys, and 76 keys. That leads us to full-sized 88-note keyboards called Digital Pianos. 

Some of my colleagues travel to paid gigs withsmaller, lightweight keyboards because they are easily portable. But they aren’t beginners; they’re professionals who also own full-sized digital or acoustic pianos at home.

ADVANTAGES OF 88-NOTE KEYBOARDS

‍1. Avoiding Confusion.

I’ve observed that students using shorter keyboards get visually disoriented when seated at my 88-key acoustic piano, and are confused about what part of the piano to begin playing. That’s never a problem if students start learning on a full-sized keyboard. 

2. Technique 

All pianists must develop their hand technique. Unfortunately, some shorter keyboards lack touch-sensitive keys to control dynamics from soft to loud, or have only semi-weighted keys, or entirely unweighted. Weighted keyboards are necessary to develop the hands’ neurological responses.

By analogy,every batter uses a bat made not of flimsy, hollow plastic but of wood, and its heft and feel build up their skills. And that is no less true for pianists, who need properly weighted keyboards. 

3. Repertoire 

As an aspiring pianist moves beyond the beginner level of any graded piano series, the printed music extends beyond the length of shorter keyboards, and your hands will be running off both ends of the keyboard. That’s an absurdity to be avoided! 

After reviewing these keyboards, fully weighted, 88-note digital pianos are the better option for beginner piano students.

SHOPPING PRIORITIES

1. KEYBOARD ACTION

The top priority is the quality of the keyboard action. Digital piano manufacturers install into their instruments a variety of piano sonorities that can be modified in various ways. However, the keyboard mechanism, once constructed, cannot be modified.

When trying out digital pianos, consider whether the keyboard has a weighted feel to it or is too light and flimsy. And is it touch-sensitive to nuances from very soft to powerful? 

Do not be overly impressed with the promotional hype of manufacturers or someone else’s preferences.  Not every pianist responds identically to the same instruments, and your reaction matters most since you are going to practice on that instrument for at least the next couple of years.

2. SOUND SYSTEM

If you practice with headphones, then wear your own headphones as you test various digital pianos; there’s a dramatic difference between what you hear through headphones versus the onboard speakers. 

But if you prefer playing and listening with built-in speakers, you will notice that higher-priced instruments routinely have higher-quality sound systems. 

3. STAND

If you buy an 88-note keyboard not in its own cabinet, it will be necessary to purchase a sturdy stand for it. Home desks or dining tables are usually too high, so choose a stand designed for digital pianos. Some stands are X-shaped, z-style, or wooden stands.

4. PEDALS

The pedal sustain tones and is absolute necessary. If your digital piano arrives with a small, flimsy pedal looking like this, discard it. They’re cheaply constructed, drive you crazy, and I don’t understand why quality manufacturers bother to make them. 

Instead, order a pedal similar in build to an acoustic piano pedal, which will cost in the range of $25 to $50. And, if you are purchasing a digital piano that is set in its own cabinet, three pedals, just like an acoustic piano, will be part of its construction.  

5. BUNDLES

I advise healthy scepticism regarding bundle deals, offering third-rate accessories such as flimsy stands, unstable piano seats, and low-quality headphones. Instead, choose stable seating suited to your height and buy comfortable, high-quality headphones if needed.  

6. DEDICATED SPACE

Finding a place to put your digital piano is a challenge when living in tight quarters, but do your best to create a Dedicated Space for your new instrument. 

Check the digital piano’s specifications before purchasing, noting its height, depth, and especially its width. Then, measure your living quarters to determine exactly to the inch how much space you have and what furniture needs to be rearranged.

Experienced pianists understand this challenge well. For example, potential customers of Steinway and other brandscan request rolled-out paper outlines to test placement in their homes before buying, but you can also simply use a measuring tape to find out for yourself. 

7. CONNECTIVITY

If you want your digital piano to connect with computers, tablets, or speakers, and to gain access to interactive learning apps, sheet music software, or notation programs, make sure the instrument you are interested in has connectivity with MIDI or Bluetooth.

8. EXTRAS

Many keyboards and digital pianos provide an array of features such as novelty sounds, transposition, sound layering, a built-in metronome, and split-keyboard functions. However, don’t be distracted by features you won’t actually be using. Most pianists quickly focus on finding a preferred grand piano sound and ignore the rest.

CURRENT PRICING

The top digital piano brands are Yamaha, Roland, Casio, Kawai, and Korg.  Each brand and model has its admirers and its critics because not every pianist has the same aesthetic values and priorities.

But for an absolute beginner on a limited budget, I would recommend taking a look at: 

Yamaha P145 $550  /  Roland FP-30 $600  /  Kawai ES60 $500. 

These instruments provide a handsome grand piano sound and a weighted keyboard. Because manufacturers continually modify their models, the above-mentioned instruments may have been updated or replaced at the time of this publication.  

Pianists who are ambitious to move past intermediate level and up to advanced level may pursue more expensive digital pianos featuring actual acoustic piano actions, with wooden keys, linear graded hammers, key counter-weights, faster escapements, as well as higher quality sound engines. A couple of examples are the Roland LX9 or the Yamaha Clavinova CVP-905 at around $9-10,000.

For pianists who are focused on the classical repertoire and ambitious to take their technique to the highest level, continual access to a well-regulated grand piano is essential for their development. But the less expensive digital pianos with weighted action will serve a beginner pianist for the first couple of years of their development. ‍ ‍

TRY-OUT IN PERSON

I encourage you to personally visit and try out a variety of digital pianos for yourself.

Take your time making a decision; you can revisit the store more than once if you wish, read reviews by consumers, and reflect on your experience so you can make your choice with confidence.  

Watch the YouTube video on How to Choose your Digital Piano: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XYBnv-ATFY